National long jumper Tia Rozario eyes fresh milestone at Asian Games

SINGAPORE – With the completion of her master’s studies in 2024 and SEA Games debut in 2025, national long jumper Tia Rozario has hit one milestone after another in consecutive years. 

In 2026, the 25-year-old will fulfil another dream of hers, when she flies the flag for the Republic at the Sept 19-Oct 4 Asian Games in Japan, having qualified for the long jump. 

Rozario qualified for the Asiad with a 6.16m personal best at the Thailand Open Track & Field Championships last June, surpassing the 6.14m benchmark set by the sixth-place finisher at the last Games in Hangzhou.

It will be her first time at the quadrennial and the desire to make her mark on her debut has seen her start the year with two national records in the first quarter. 

Earlier in April, she smashed her own triple jump mark at the Australian Athletics Championships, with her leap of 13.21m bettering her previous national mark of 13.01m from the Duke Invitational two years ago. 

In February, she set the women’s indoor long jump national record at the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships in Tianjin, China, after she leapt 5.96m in the final to better her previous mark of 5.82m registered in 2024.

Speaking to The Straits Times after she finished second at the Singapore Open Track and Field Championships on April 16, Rozario said: “Since I came back in 2024, I’ve been able to show myself, my coach and Singapore that I am consistently making improvements, getting stronger. And it’s translating into farther jumps.

“For 2026, I definitely want to try and get a medal at the Asian Games. And I think I’m definitely on the right path. I want to stay healthy, keep pushing, and hopefully I can execute good jumps in the Asian Games. 

“It will be a dream for me.”

Rozario’s 5.73m leap at the National Stadium on April 16 saw her take silver, while Indonesia’s Vinsensia Awutet Amjaram won gold with a 5.78m effort. Malaysia’s Nurkhaleesa Yasmin Awang finished third with a 5.68m attempt.

Rozario will compete in the triple jump on April 17 and is confident of meeting the Asiad qualifying mark of 13.34m.

National jumps coach Valeri Obidko said that he has been pleased to see Rozario progress, since the pair reunited in July 2024 after she completed her master’s degree in biomedical science at Duke University in the United States.

“The idea for 2026 is to compete in as many overseas competitions to get the exposure and confidence,” said Obidko.  

“In May and June, we have competitions in China and Taiwan. She is a fast learner and she is doing all she can to improve.” 

Meanwhile, Singapore’s sprint queen and Asian Games 200m champion Shanti Pereira, who was scheduled to compete in the women’s 200m on April 16, did not take to the track.  

A day earlier, she had suffered an injury scare in the women’s 100m final. She slowed down after the start of the race and jogged to the finish line, ending the race behind the other seven competitors. 

The 100m and 200m national record holder later walked gingerly past the mixed zone.  

In response to queries, a Singapore Athletics spokesperson said on April 16: “A minor injury will keep Shanti from competing in the Singapore Open, but we’re expecting a full recovery in time for her next scheduled event on April 29, the 60th Oda Mikio Memorial in Japan.”

In her absence, Vietnam’s Le Thi Cam Tu won 200m gold in 23.64sec, ahead of Singapore’s Elizabeth-Ann Tan (24.20) and Chinese Taipei’s Yang Mei-mei (24.37).

In the men’s 200m, Singapore’s Marc Louis finished second after registering 21.24sec, ahead of teammate Calvin Quek (21.29), who won the 400m hurdles gold at the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand.

Taiwanese sprinter Wu Yen-ming finished first in a championship record of 20.74sec. The previous mark of 20.86 was set in 1998 by Canadian sprinter O’ Brian Gibbons.

This was the first 200m race of the season for Louis, who ended the 2025 season in style when he won a SEA Games silver with a national-record 20.72sec in the final. While he and his coach Benber Yu are still working out details around training camps and overseas competitions, he is eyeing an improved showing at the Asian Games. 

In 2023 in Hangzhou, Louis clocked 10.27sec in the 100m semi-finals to better U. K. Shyam’s national mark of 10.37 set in 2001. The timing was, however, not good enough to make the final. 

Louis, who is also hoping to be at the July 23-Aug 2 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, said: “I am focusing more on the Asian Games this year, to try and get a PB (personal best) or even medal. Hopefully, I can run faster in future competitions.”

“My coach and I are focusing more on top speed and on technique. I want to be able to maintain the top speed even longer,” he added.

In the women’s 10,000m, Singapore’s Nicole Low clinched gold in a championship record of 36min 59.41sec, to eclipse Laotian runner Lodkeo Inthakumman’s 37:24.85 mark from 2023. Low’s teammates Goh Shing Ling (38:09.78) and Ng Xuan Jie (38:46.22) were second and third respectively. 

She said after the victory: “It feels great especially doing it on home ground. It was a tough race, in humid conditions but I’m glad I pulled through to the end. The loose goal was to do a sub 37-minute and so the last lap was quite a push.”

She also credited her friends in the crowd who pushed her, saying: “The cheers really help to push through the 25 laps which is quite gruelling. Every cheer spurs me on.”

• Dive into all the sporting action and trends in Singapore with ST’s weekly newsletter.